Centuries
by KTarra
Summary: What happens when the past literally speaks to the future to tell their story? I was graciously given permission by Windjammers a long time ago to borrow some of her characters for an idea I had. Real life intervened in a bad way. I'm hoping to get this going again by publishing the first couple of chapters. Remember reviews are love!
1. Chapter 1

Centuries

By: Ktarra

Disclaimer: I do not own the original characters! Oh how I wish I did though! The only thing I receive for these stories is the adoration of the my fellow fanfic readers! Reviews are love!

A/N: Once again I must thank my awesome beta Windjammers for allowing me to play with her original characters for this story. If you have not read _This Domino Won't Fall_, DO NOT DO ANYTHING ELSE UNTIL YOU DO! It is awesome. While my story does not technically take place in the same universe/timeline as _Domino_ you will understand my story much better if you have read _Domino_ first.

This story will borrow bits from my already published stories as well as parts from unpublished stories so enjoy!

On with the story…..

_Some legends are told_

_Some turn to dust or to gold_

_But you will remember me_

_Remember me for centuries_

_Centuries - _Fall Out Boy

"_History will be kind to me for I intend to write it."_

Sir Winston Churchill

Dr. Elias Pitcairn stepped into his kitchen and took out a bottle of aged Scotch. As a general rule, he rarely drank and never to excess, but after the events of the last week, he thought he had a reason to have a glass. A toast? A celebration of a successful mission? A brief, alcoholic respite to turn off the fear of what might have gone wrong? Scotch... maybe not the universal panacea, but perhaps something to take the edge off? But he did have one hell of an edge... "Oh, scite it all," he said. He took the bottle with him. He definitely felt the need for more than one glass. He turned on the viewing screen before taking his customary seat in his living area. The evening news quickly popped up filling him in on the day's headlines.

As the commentator droned on about various events around the world, Pitcairn's thoughts turned back to history and wondered again just how much they might have gotten wrong. Administrator Collier's words about the universe having a preferred timeline had given him pause. If the universe had a preferred timeline and in that timeline Jennifer Chase was supposed to live out her life with Jonathan Power, then who were they to decide otherwise? It all seemed a bit egotistical now to assume that they knew best when they almost destroyed several peoples lives because they didn't want to lose their present existence. He wondered if Jonathan Power would find it comforting that universe may have preferred to have Jennifer with him?

Elias did. Even though Collier had deemed the experiment a success and he, Delphi and Jillian had kept their jobs with no professional or personal repercussions for their unauthorized time manipulation, his initial elation had evaporated as the day wore on. For the first time, he was confronted by the very real consequences of time manipulation. He had "traveled" back and met the man and the team that they had spent a lifetime studying. They were no longer just historical figures. They were real to him. They had lived and suffered so that future generations could live in peace. The people and lives affected by his experiments had never before been as real as Captain Power and his team. His thoughts turned to the thousands of other experiments that he and others in his field had conducted over the years. Were there unintended consequences that they knew nothing about? Had they inadvertently destroyed lives in their quest to study and ultimately control time? For the first time he really had to consider if they were playing God with something they will never completely understand or have the ability to control.

Before he got much further in his thoughts, the ding of the door notification dragged him out of his thoughts. He didn't really want to deal with anyone tonight. He wanted to sit in his chair and consider the consequences - how the events of the past week would affect not only his future but the world's as well.

He slid his palm over the control and the door slid open. He was about to tell whoever it was to go away when he came face to face with a direct consequence of this week's events.

Elias could not believe his eyes. "Captain Power?"

"No, It's been a while since I was a captain. My name is Colonel Matthew Power. Although I can understand your confusion. Some of the older family members have always told me I looked just like Jon. You're Doctor Elias Pitcairn? Temporal physicist?" the younger man returned.

Elias stood there for a few moments with his mouth opening and closing like a fish.

"Dr. Pitcairn?" the visitor asked again.

"Ye..yes..I'm Dr. Pitcairn," Elias finally managed to reply.

"Are you alright?" Col. Power inquired.

"Yes… uh, no. Now I definitely need a drink. Please do come in," Elias stated and turned back to the living area, leaving the door open.

Elias returned to his chair and poured himself some Scotch as his guest entered the living room. He quickly downed that one and had started to pour another when he remembered his manners.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Would you like a drink, Colonel?"

"No, I'm fine. Thank you. May I sit?"

"Yes, please. I'm sorry. It's been a scituva week and I wasn't really expecting anyone this evening. Much less…."

"Much less me? I guess meeting a descendant of the man that, a week ago by your memory, didn't have any descendants would be a bit disconcerting."

"A bit," Pitcairn agreed staring at the young man. "You really do look exactly like him," he continued a moment later.

"So I've been told. Of course the numerous pictures of him attest to that fact as well. If you think I look like him, you should meet my cousin, Rebecca. She looks just like Jennifer."

"How many of you are there?" Elias asked.

"I don't have an exact number, but I'd imagine there are at least a few hundred of their descendants by now."

"And how are you related?"

"Jonathan Power is my great, great, great, great grandfather. I'm directly descended from his oldest son, Matthew Stuart Power."

"So you're Matthew Stuart too?"

"No," the younger man chuckled. "Thankfully there was only three of them before my great grandmother Sarah got her way and began using different middle names. I'm Matthew West Power."

"So who is Sarah and where did West come from? I don't remember anyone with that name in the immediate family history of the Power team."

"Well, you see, Doctor, that is part of the reason I'm here. Honestly I don't even know where to start. Your visit affected the Power team in ways you couldn't imagine. Shortly after your visit, they began to wonder what history would write about them, and how much of that would be accurate. They didn't like the idea that history would remember them as anything other than what they were. Normal people who lived in a time that required everything they had to survive."

"They were not normal! They defeated the Machine Empire and killed Dread! They're heroes!" Pitcairn stated emphatically.

"I agree with you, but they wouldn't have and more precisely they didn't. They felt they were doing what was necessary. They didn't feel particularly heroic when they had to kill members of the Dread Youth in battle. Jennifer particularly did not enjoy the hero worship that followed her the rest of her life."

"How do you know this?"

The colonel reached down to the case sitting beside him on the chair.

"After they met you, they all decided to keep extensive journals. They kept writing in them the rest of their lives. They wanted to tell their story in their words. They wanted to be remembered for who and what they were instead of larger than life heroes. Jennifer specifically wanted to be remembered for the success she had as a pilot and a mother. She loved her children. She loved flying and it thrilled her to no end that three of her children went on to be pilots. As time past, and they knew their lives were coming to end, they left specific instructions that these journals were passed down through the family beginning with their oldest son, Matthew. Their instructions were that these journals were to be given to you in 2357. They wanted you to have the journals."

"Me?" he gasped.

"Yes, they felt they owed their lives in part to you. In a way, we do owe our lives to you. If you hadn't gone against the council's orders, none of us would be here. Jon made it very clear in his journals he would never have married or had a family after losing Jennifer. I know you haven't had a chance to catch up entirely with the new history but because of you our family has made a important contribution to society. Among their descendants are doctors, scientists, legislators, military servicemen such as myself...people who would never have existed if you hadn't done what you did. Then there is the rest of the team. Matt remarried to a woman he'd known for over two decades who was a close friend of his first wife. They adopted a couple of children who had been part of the Dread Youth. They had some adventures with those two kids. Robert finally settled down, had a family and went on to help rebuild the communications networks across the world. Michael took several years to finally get married. They chose not to have any children of their own and instead took in ones that had lost their families. Michael went on to help get the necessary infrastructures rebuilt. Roads and the like, and Stuart… well since you all were after Stuart in the first place I'm sure you know what happened to him. He never remarried. He championed the rebuilding of the Los Alamos and JPL labs and was a doting grandfather. None of this would have been possible without your actions. Sure the labs would have been rebuilt, but when you read the journals of the rest of the team, they made it very clear that they all would have struggled to move on if they'd lost Jennifer. The team was like family and none of them would have wanted to move on and be happy when Jon wouldn't be able to have that same happiness. In short, they wanted you to know their stories. They wanted to express their gratitude. Our family has retained copies of them but the journals are yours."

"That still doesn't answer my question of who Sarah was or how the West name is connected to you?"

"Sarah Cole Power was my great grandfather's wife. She was a handful according to my dad. My great grandfather Matthew III was a very serious young man, and fully intended to name his first son Matthew Stuart to continue the tradition. Sarah had other ideas. She knew the family history and apparently did not like the idea of passing along the name to countless generations. She wanted their children to have names that were individual to them. She didn't mind them having family names but the idea of eventually have a Matthew Stuart Power the VII or whatever was a little much. So she dug around in the family tree for names. Hence where my middle name comes from."

"And…"

"Come now, Doctor, if I tell you everything it will spoil the surprise."

"Oh alright...but how did you find me? I don't recall giving them anything other than the year."

"Not quite. You also told them your name, but that was all. However, they and every one of us since then have agreed that anything that big would not be able to be kept secret. I didn't reach the rank of colonel by not knowing what to keep my eyes open for. I've had a hand in the temporal sciences and specifically your research at JPL for several years now. When the news broke earlier today about Micklon's arrest and the pending charges, I knew this was the event I was waiting for."

Power extended his hand with the case for Elias to take. Hesitantly, Elias took the case.

"I don't know what to say. Are you sure you want me to have these? I'm a perfect stranger."

"One thing I've learned about Jon was that when he said something he meant it. Following the end of the war there was little sympathy for the surviving Dread Youth. That combined with the lack of any form of centralized government for several years led to some tragic results all over the world. Jon knew there was little he could do for the Dread Youth overseas but he refused to accept what many thought should be the outcome here. There were many who called for mass executions of all the surviving members even the young children and babies. Jon would not stand for it. The issue hit too close to home. The thought that that could have been Jennifer's fate under other circumstances strengthened his resolve to force the provisional regional governments across the country to rehabilitate and help the former Dread Youth integrate into society. He said history would remember that they won the war but they would be judged on how they handled the peace that followed. He flat refused to have the blood of hundred of thousands Dread Youth on not only his hands but on the hand of an entire generation. He looked back to how the world viewed Germany following the end of World War and the consequences of the Holocaust. He didn't want to see that happen and refused to allow it to happen. He saved countless lives. So when he said he wanted you to have his journals we took it seriously. Jennifer and the rest of the team felt the same. In truth the journals don't really belong to us. They have been a charge for us to keep until the appointed time. The time has come for us to complete those instructions. We did keep copies like I said. They are part of our history, but they are yours. Read them. If you had any doubts about the actions you took in violating the orders of the council, then I hope these convince you that you did the right thing."

"Have you read them?" Elias asked.

"I have. Every single one of them. Jon and Jennifer Power are as real to me as you are, Doctor. They poured everything into those journals. Their successes, their failures, everything. You could almost say they were a little obsessed with making sure history was recorded accurately, but their words are a truly a treasure. Not many families have this kind of legacy kept alive for them."

"No, they don't," Elias agreed. "What of the rest of the team's journals? Are they as interesting as you claim Jon and Jennifer's are?"

"Oh yes! You'll have fun reading through them. My family has only one request. The journals are yours for the term of your life. Upon your death we would like the journals to revert back to my children or grandchildren. The secret of your involvement has been kept by my branch of the family. Literally, from parent to child since the beginning. It is our firm belief that it is a secret that is best kept that way."

"I quite agree, Colonel. I will make the necessary arrangements to ensure their safe return to your family when the time comes...and thank you. I will treasure these."

"I've taken enough of your time, Doctor. I've included my contact information in a file in there. When you've had some time to read through some of them, contact me. I'd like to know your thoughts."

"I will do that," the older man stated, still gently cradling the case in his hands.

"It was nice to meet you, Doctor," Colonel Power said as he stood and extended his hand.

After a moment, Elias stood and took the man's hand. "You as well, Colonel."

"I'll see myself out, Doctor. You've got some light reading to do before work tomorrow. Goodnight."

"Goodnight," Elias muttered as he sat in his chair. He vaguely heard the front door slide shut.

He sat there for several minutes before breaking the seal on the case…..


	2. Chapter 2

Centuries Chpt 2

Dr. Elias Pitcairn gazed at the contents of the case, his drink completely forgotten and warming on the table where he left it. There were rows upon rows of neatly organized data drives. He gently ran his hand over the tops of the drives completely awed at the gift he'd been given. Not only was Elias a temporal scientist he was a historian at heart. The value of the treasure before him was priceless. He picked up a couple of the drives and noticed that they had been labeled with the author's name and dates recorded. He quickly located the earliest date for Jon's journals and connected the drive to his computer. After a few moments the contents of the drive appeared on his screen. There were dozens of journal entries on that drive alone.

He selected the first entry. He expected a written entry to appear on his screen. To his surprise and delight the file was in audio format.

_(Jon's Voice)_

_Jonathan Power, personal log October 15, 2148. _

_It's a been a few months since my last entry. I just couldn't bring myself to continue to record my own personal hell. Until we lost Jennifer for those seven months I never understood the anguish my father felt upon losing my mother. Or what Matt felt when he lost not only Joanna, but his kids as well. It was paralyzing at times. It's a level of pain I don't quite know how to describe. It's like being crushed and ripped apart at the same time. It is something I never want to experience again. Dr. Pitcairn, I owe you my life. _

_I'm sure you're surprised to hear me address you. We, the team and I, decided it would be a good idea to be more diligent in recording our own history in our words. We've always kept personal and team logs. After meeting you we began to wonder just what the people in your time knew about us and how much of that was accurate? I wonder how you'll feel when you hear a long dead voice and one you only met for a couple of minutes sharing their thoughts and feelings about that fateful encounter. I imagine it must be kind of surreal. _

_I am not kidding, though. I owe you my life. The rage I felt after losing Jennifer took most of the Resistance leaders by surprise. I had not disclosed my feelings previously and so no one was aware that I was in love with her. I learned shortly before Jennifer returned that the other Resistance teams were making contingency plans for when I eventually got myself killed. The sad thing is I didn't care. All I wanted was for the pain to stop. It did for a brief moment with each victory only to reemerge when that moment was over. _

_I wonder if you have a family, Dr. Pitcairn? I hope so. I don't have much in the way of blood relatives, but I've been blessed to call my team family and now that Jennifer is back I have hope that we will have a family of our own someday. I couldn't say that just four months ago. I had no hope for a happy future with a family. I spent the seven months she was gone living with anger and regret. I was angry with Dread for taking her from me, but I was angry at myself too. I'd let my fear stand in the way and she…-clearing throat-...ugh she died not knowing how I really felt about her. Now that I have her back not a day goes by that I don't show her how I feel. I hope you have that kind of relationship in your life. Matt had that with his first wife, but I'm sure you probably know about his family. Family...that really is what we are fighting for. We're not fighting this war for glory or to be remembered as heroes. We're fighting for our very existence. To grow, to live and love, to have a family...to leave our mark on this world and leave it just a little bit better than we found it. _

_The Resistance is starting to coalesce into a more organized force. We're beginning to coordinate attacks. It's slow going but we're making progress. We've got a long way to go, but we know what we have to do. We will not fail. _

_My goal, Dr. Pitcairn, is that someday you will receive my journals as well as those of my team. In a way I wish I could talk to you again to see how my descendants and our world has fared but I realize that is not possible. Maybe it's possible from your end but probably not a good idea. Robert and Jennifer would love to pick your brain about scientific advancements but again probably not a good idea. _

_At any rate, I hope this is the first in a long line of entries to you. I know Jennifer has begun hers not sure about the rest of the team. I'll update in a few days. We've got a couple of busy days coming up with planned missions all across the country. I need to get some sleep. _

_End personal log._

Elias sat stunned for a moment before quickly selecting the next entry. Jonathan Power's voice soon filled the room again.

_Jonathan Power Personal Log Oct 22, 2148_

_I had intended to update a few days ago but well what's that old saying? Oh, yes,...the best laid plans of mice and men. Our planned attacks went well but we were laid up at the Resistance hospital in Atlanta for a few days. Matt and Robert were both injured. Matt required surgery to repair some of the damage from a blast from Soaron. They're both doing better, so we were finally able to return to our base. We're all a little banged up, but Matt and Robert were the most seriously injured. The hardest part of the battle is the same as always for me. Jennifer is back in the thick of it. Right where she wants to be. Right where I don't want her to be. I would much rather that she stay at the base or at the very least in the ship but I have to be realistic and realize that she will never agree to such a plan. So far she hasn't been seriously injured since we got her back. I'm a little worried of what my reaction will be when it does happen. I know it will happen again. I'm sure we'll all collect more scars and injuries before this war is over. At least the missions were successful._

_The Resistance received good intel that a new biomech plant was under construction and that a large supply convoy was on its way there. We attacked the convoy, seized the supplies, and destroyed the factory as well. All that is left of the emerging plant is a hole in the ground. Thankfully there were no Resistance casualties, just injuries. The same is not true of the Dread Youth who were with the convoy. There were several casualties among their ranks. One of whom was familiar to Jennifer. The over unit in charge had been one of her commanding officers when Jennifer was a cadet. It's not the first time she's seen someone she once knew in the Youth dead on the battlefield, but it always upsets her a bit, because she knows that it's another life lost to the Machine Empire. She's been a little down since the battle but she'll bounce back in a few days. She always does. She never lets anything keep her down for long. It's one of her best traits but one that at times frustrates me as she also applies that philosophy to physical injuries. She always has. From the moment we rescued her she pushes through anything to get back out there and make a difference. To save lives. In the early days it was because she felt she needed to make up for the evil she'd been forced to be a party to in the Dread Youth. Now she just refuses to allow Dread to destroy any more lives as long as there is breath in her body. _

_Over the years we've gone a round or two over her failure to take the time necessary to heal and I'm sure we'll go a few more before it's all over. To be honest I don't really care if we do. I'm just glad she's here for us to do that. Besides making up is the best part of having a fight anyway._

_Before she "died" I kept telling myself someday I'll do this or that. And then someday was gone. We always think we have all the time in the world. I should have known better. I did know better but just kept fooling myself. I'm not fooling myself anymore. Those seven months taught me that not only are we not guaranteed tomorrow, we need to treasure every moment we have with those we love while we have them. I'm going to ask Jennifer to marry me tonight. Before I had always planned to wait until we won the war. Now I don't want to wait a moment longer. I don't even have a ring to give her. My Dad told me once that Mom had intended to give me her rings one day but as things turned out that's not possible now. I will find a way to at least get us something to wear as wedding bands. I want the world to know we belong to each other. _

_It's strange in a way. For so many years I was completely focused on winning the war. Defeating Dread. Avenging my father. Then we rescued Jennifer and our perspective changed drastically. Until then we'd had no idea how the Youth functioned or were trained or anything. We got a first hand look at how truly depraved Dread had become. If anything learning from Jennifer how the Youth Corp operated strengthened my resolve to defeat Dread. _

_Jennifer likes to say we taught her how to be human, but to be perfectly honest, Elias, she taught us. We'd all been fighting for survival for so long that I think we forgot exactly what we were fighting for. Watching her learn and grow as a person was an honor and somewhere in the middle of all of it, I fell in love with her. _

_I'll have to tell you the story of when I realized I was in love with her another time. She's waiting for me. _

_End Personal Log._

Elias wasted no time in quickly selecting the next entry.

_Jonathan Power Personal Log Nov 1, 2148_

_It's a been busy week. We had several supply missions out to the East Coast as well as the Gulf Coast. Had a run in with Soaron. Again. That damn bio-bird as Jennifer calls him, truly has a knack for showing up at the worst possible times. We were attempting to land near old Pensacola, when the alarm went off. Jennifer is one of the best if not the best pilot in the resistance but even she admits it's pretty damn hard to maneuver the jump ship when it's as fully loaded as it was at the time. Thankfully the UTO had fighters in the area that were able to lend a hand. That is not always the case. We were lucky that day. We were able to deliver the supplies and head home. Really, the worst part of the day was after we got home and began repairs on the jump ship. The power flow regulators going to the engines had been damaged during our scuffle with Soaron. Jennifer had managed a work around to get us home. However, some unforeseen damage to the secondary system that controls the pressure in the fuel lines had also been damaged. So by the time, Jennifer and Scout went to remove the plating and repair the damage there was quite a bit of pressure built up. Needless to say we had a minor explosion and small fire on our hands. Not to mention one very pissed off pilot. With a second degree burn on her left arm and some cuts from the flying metal. To be honest, pissed doesn't even begin to cover it. Jennifer hates it when she can't complete the repairs herself. Robert had similar injuries. They're both going to be fine in a few days. _

_It took several days to get the ship repaired. Thankfully we had almost all the parts we needed and those we didn't have we were able to acquire fairly quickly. So now Jennifer is happy that her ship is again in working order._

_So I've talked this long and I haven't even told you how she answered me. I won't go into specific details of how the evening went other than to say that she said yes. So eventually I'll have other details about when we plan to get married. We didn't really get that far into the discussion after she said yes. _

_Anyway, we have another couple of hectic weeks coming up. We've got a meeting with some of the other resistance leaders next week. We're trying to iron out some details, but we're looking at actually restarting up one of the military academies to train an actual resistance army. We don't know how long this war is going to last, but we all agree that it will definitely be shorter if we can get a trained force in the field. Obviously, they want Jennifer to design some classes on how to specifically deal with the Dread Youth, and then how to outfly them. _

_Jennifer is concerned that if she gets involved with the academy she won't be able to be out in the field. She wants to be on the front lines, but I can honestly tell you it won't break my heart if she's at the academies more than in the field. _

_At any rate, it's getting late. We've got another busy day tomorrow._

_End Personal Log. _

Elias sat back in his chair. He couldn't believe his ears. While technically, he'd just met the man a few hours ago, it was also technically true that the man had been dead for a little over a hundred and fifty years. To hear Captain Power's voice tell his story in his words. It was indescribable. It was a treasure of immeasurable value. He couldn't help but wonder how much of the history they currently know might actually be wrong. He looked at the case that Col. Power left him. There were hundreds of data files in there. It would take him years to listen to all of them. Even if it took the rest of his life he would make sure he listened to every last one of them. He owed them that much and so much more for the sacrifices they made for the future.

He carefully selected another file, took a sip of his drink, and sat back to listen and learn.

End Chpt 2


End file.
